BIG ARTS awards annual scholarships
BIG ARTS recently announced its 2026 Performing and Creative Arts Scholarship recipients.
This year, the program awarded eight local students, recognizing their outstanding dedication and artistic promise. The recipients were recognized at the Annual Art Vibe on June 13 on Sanibel.
Totaling $35,000, the scholarships went to:
– Kareema Colson, who is pursuing a Bachelor of Music in oboe performance at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music
– Samantha Curls, who is pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in arts, entertainment, and creative technologies at the Georgia Institute of Technology
– Emily Reagan Feichthaler, who is pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in musical theater at Georgetown University
– Hazel Fitzpatrick, who is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in music (tuba, trombone and euphonium) at the University of Central Florida
– Gianna Gwendolyn Lieze-Adams, who is pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theater and performance at Emerson College
– Kaylin Norwood, who is pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theater arts at Howard University
– Diana Talavera, who is pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting at Florida Gulf Coast University
In addition, BIG ARTS presented the Patricia Thurber Memorial Scholarship to Sarah Elizabeth Valentina Conley, who will serve as a graduate assistant at the University of Florida while pursuing a Master of Music in viola performance.
The scholarships are awarded annually to graduating high school seniors and current higher education students from Lee County who are pursuing careers in the arts. They range from $2,500 to $5,000 and are paid directly to the recipient’s institution, which may be any accredited college or university.
The scholarship program is made possible through the support of BIG ARTS donors.
For more information, visit https://bigarts.org/programs/scholarships/.